Four women. Four friends. Four sets of eyes on the natural world. Four visual narratives. Four directions. Welcome to COMPASS.

COMPASS is a collective photographic exhibition that explore alternate views of the natural world surrounding us, a world in which we have always coexisted with nature, but also a world often replaced with “concrete jungles” that offer no quiet refuge. Have we been able to successfully adapt to the absence of nature? How do we find our way back to nature? Where do we go to seek tranquility? What direction do we take?

The exhibition seeks to redefine the subject of “nature” in a broader, perhaps more everyday, context. The natural world is often framed, especially by the traditional male photographer, as impressive landscapes – distant, powerful, mysterious, sometimes friendly but just as often threatening. What if nature is also something close to us – intimate, comforting, still mysterious but more welcoming? The sort of alternate framing that women photographers have more often brought forward.

Nature, in a woman’s eyes, can be delicate flowers entombed in ice. Nature, in a woman’s eyes, can be snow-blanketed fields that provide solitary feelings of comfort. Nature, in a woman’s eyes, can uncover the sleight-of-hand that would hide technology amidst verdant forests. Nature, in a woman’s eyes, can be simple remnants of ample growth cast in new light and texture. The vast, complex mosaic of the natural world has infinite possibilities, multiple directions, manifold interpretations. Sometimes, it takes a woman’s eyes to see the trees amongst the forest.

In this exhibition, we encourage the viewer to disconnect from the outside world and just bathe in the simplicity of nature’s smallest wonders, the serenity of the land, and the humor of man’s intrusions. Immerse yourself in a simple walk around the compass rose. Clear your mind, let go, and feel.